Now even the bank bosses say bonuses are a bad thing: Survey reveals surprising views of City bankers' supervisors

Investment bankers have vigorously defended their bonuses against political attacks, but research shows that their supervisors regard the huge lump sum payments as bad for business.

A survey of top compliance and risk officers – those with the job of supervising City bankers – has found that 49 per cent of them believe inappropriate remuneration structures were ‘a barrier to good culture’ in their sector.

The acknowledgement from within banking that pay arrangements may be a problem is surprising because bosses have made strenuous efforts to protect the culture of high pay and bonuses.

49 per cent of them believe inappropriate remuneration structures were ‘a barrier to good culture’ in their sector.

Britain’s biggest banks have defended bonuses against EU rules designed to limit the amount of variable pay that a bank can award.

It has been suggested that the system of bonuses for bankers was a key cause of the financial crisis because it encouraged them to take big risks to increase their year-end payouts without thinking about the longer-term consequences.

The disquiet over pay packages was bigger among investment bank risk officers than in other sectors.

Across the financial services industry as a whole, 36 per cent of risk and compliance officers surveyed by accountancy firm BDO said pay was a problem.

BDO partner Dan Taylor said: ‘There is a real lack of clarity as to what does foster good culture and a sense of doing the right thing.’

Banks have been desperate to show that they are encouraging change in their organisations following the financial crisis. Barclays is spending billions of pounds on ‘Project Transform’, which aims to overhaul the attitudes of bankers.